For those of you that don't feel like reading, here is the link to IPS patch. Apply the patch to an unmodified vanilla rom.

For those of you who do enjoy the juicy details, welcome! This is my third time going through the release process, and this time, I really want it to be perfect... buuuuuuuut I couldn't resist putting at at least a demo because I'm eager for feedback.

So, after realizing that my Rudo script had decided it was going to implode on itself and decide to not burn the force's first ship (tragic, I know), I had to go back and completely rebuild several key scripts. Some later game events still need to be rebuilt, but everything up to and including chapter 2 should work... I think...

Regardless, all chapter 2 battles have been created, so the demo is now up through chapter 2! There are new sights to behold, old terrors revamped *cough*MARIONETTE*cough* and new ones arisen from graves untold!

Chapter 3 is done, too! Snipers galore in the quarry, a dark foe awaits in the forest far to the north of Bustoke, and the Lazer Eye Bridge has fractured to make way for its new toy!

Feel free to provide feedback if you'd like!

Now that all that is out of the way, here are some of the details:

Key Game Changes:

WARNING: SPOILER!

(Most) all characters are available for use from the very beginning at level 1. Some vanilla characters (Hanzou, Musashi, Domingo, and Jogurt) are not available, and two new characters, Yeesha from SFCD and Narsha from RotDD, are included from the get-go. One character is scripted to join much later, I'm not going to spoil who it is, but you can probably guess, and if you look at the rom, you'll see them.

Magic has been completely reworked, with several spells being added, one removed (Dispel). See the magic section for details on individual spells and spell classes.

Nearly every battle has had significant changes, be they map overhauls, altered enemy positions, new enemies, and new spell load outs.

Nearly every force member has a unique class associated with them (except healers, due to the way healing xp works). More details will be under the characters section.

All classes (at least pre-promotion) feature identical AI priority, and should all see attention by the AI.

All items that can break will break 100% of the time, and will immediately need to be repaired, or be lost on the next use.

The range cap has been increased from 3 to 5.

Ranged weapons have been split into bows and arrows. The bow you have equipped will determine the range (and later, aoe) of the attack, while arrows provide a majority if the archers attack stat. All archer weapons are strong against flying enemies.

Characters:

WARNING: SPOILER!

Max: Swordsman>Blessed

If you've played my mod before, you already knew about this one. Pre-promotion, Max should play the same as before, but once you promote him (which I advise you do), he gains wings and will fly above the battlefield. Max is able to serve as an excellent front liner, and can soak up a lot of damage with his high HP and regen, but be wary, his holy blessing renders him weak to desoul, and a lot of late game enemies, rather than just Kane and Dark Dragon, will try and throw high level desoul spells at you.

His ultimate weapon is still the Chaos Breaker, which can be used to restore some MP to the wielder.

Max learns Egress, Bolt, and Bless

Narsha: Swordsman>Paladin

A surprise addition to the force, Narsha takes Lowe's place in the early game story, and can prove to be a very valuable asset to the force with her high defense and attack. Narsha is the supreme champion of taking hits to the face, and will take quite a lot, as she gains an AI priority once you promote her, as well as a chance to put enemies to sleep.

Unique among swordsmen, Narsha can also equip axes, which can occasionally give her an extra edge in her versatility.

Narsha's ultimate weapon, the Heavenstar Mace, which grants her cleaving attacks, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Narsha learns Egress, Aura, and Bless

???: Swordsman>Dark Knight

Rounding out your swordsmen, this character focuses more on offence than the others, featuring high attack growth and more agility than the others, at the cost of some health and defense. Use them to dish out some serious pain, but be careful, as they are weak to damaging magic.

???'s ultimate weapon, the Chaos Slayer, grants the chance to instantly kill an enemy, Is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Mae: Knight>Vanguard

Mae should be one of the best front-line tanks available, with one of the highest defenses and above-average HP. She suffers from her low attack after a while, however and won't be able to take down many late-game foes alone.

Post promotion, she features the highest AI priority of the force, with her presence taunting any foe in range.Mae can take any physical attack thrown at her, and with a healer at her side, any choke point becomes impenetrable.

Mae's ultimate weapon, the Vanguard Shield, which grants her increased defense and a cleaving attack that deals a flat 20 damage, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Ken: Knight>Bulwark

Where Mae excels in defense, Ken excels in raw HP. Able to face down any enemy mages, Ken can shrug off most magical damage. Keep a healer on him at a range, and he should never fall. Post promotion, Ken gains slightly increased AI priority, as well as minor elemental resistances.

Ken's ultimate weapon, the Bulwark Shield, which grants increased defense and a cleaving attack that hits for a flat 20 damage, is available for purchase in Runefaust

Pelle: Knight>Lancer

Pelle is the raw muscle behind the force, featuring one of the highest attack and agility values, albeit matched by his sub-par defense and HP. He gains a quick burst of defense in the early game, but it stops just as quickly as it started. Keep him safe (or feed him kills and have him over leveled), and he'll punch a hole through Darksol's forces.

Pelle's ultimate weapon, the Gungnir, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Earnest: Knight>Reaver

While Pelle lets raw attack power put him over the top, Earnest lets his phenomenal critical rate surpass his brute-force counterpart in terms of damage on occasion. With average defense and above average HP, Earnest is also not nearly as frail as Pelle, allowing him to last longer in a fight, on occasion. After promorion, Earnest gains a small chance to instantly kill his foes on attack.

Earnest's ultimate weapon, the Reaver Lance, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Vankar: Knight>Ranger

Vankar, similar to his vanilla self, will serve as an average character, never truly excelling in any areas except for agility, at least until he earns his promotion. Gaining a much better movement type, reducing his centaur mobility issues in nearly every terrain and giving him free movement in forests, reduced AI priority, as well as an increased multi-attack rate, Vankar becomes excellent in hit-and-run tactics.

Vankar's ultimate weapon, the Ranger Spear, which grants him increased movement and a medium-ranged attack that deals a flat 35 damage to a single enemy, is available for purchase in Runefaust

Arthur Knight>Cavalier

Statistically, Arthur is the weakest of his knightly counterparts, featuring only average stats across the board and late growths in all of them. Where he stands apart is his magic, of which he gains a wide selection, learning Blaze, Freeze, Bolt, and Drain up to level 3, allowing him to deal with multiple foes at once, as well as replenish his modest Mouse pool.

Arthur's ultimate weapon, the Holy Lance, which grants him a low range attack that deals a flat 40 damage to a single enemy, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Guntz: Steam Knight>Steam Baron

By far the most armor plated force member, Guntz features the single highest defense growth, aside from Jogurt, of the entire force. While he has above average HP, his attack, movement, and agility are abysmal. He'll have a hard time getting into position, but, once there, he becomes the very definition of an immovable object. Unlike in Vanilla, Guntz cannot wield spears, and, as such, is less versatile and his power spikes are more spread out than many other tanks. Post promotion, Guntz gains AI priority equal to Mae.

Guntz's ultimate weapon, the steam engine, which increases his movement and allows him to charge through a group of enemies in a line in front of him for a flat 25 damage, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Kokichi: Wing Knight>Sky Lord

Along a similar vein to Guntz, albeit with less defense but more attack and agility (though both are still below average), Kokichi makes a name for himself as a flying tank. While he is also unable to equip spears, his superior mobility and evasion both make him extremely versatile, allowing him to flank and distract enemies while your force gets into position.

Kokichi's ultimate weapon, the steam engine, which increases his movement and allows him to charge through a group of enemies in a line in front of him for a flat 25 damage, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Gort: Warrior>Gladiator

While his agility may not allow him to reach the front lines first, Gort's powerful axe swings will clear the way for his compatriots. Be extremely careful with him, though. His average defense grows slowly, and he won't last long if he is targeted. Once promoted, Gort gains a few minor elemental resistances, increased evasion, and an increased multi attack rate.

Gort's ultimate weapon, the Mjolnir, which grants him a cleaving attack, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Luke: Warrior>Marauder

Just like Gort, Luke will not be the first to the fight, but he will certainly be the last. Boasting high defense and HP, Luke can handle his own quite effectively. Following promotion, Luke gains strong elemental resistances, increased evasion, increased AI priority, and increased multi attack rate, allowing him to be one of the hardest hitting tanks, so long as the stars align for him.

Luke's ultimate weapon, the Tiwaz, which grants him increased defense and a cleaving attack that hits for a flat 20 damage, is available for purchase in Runefaust

Hans: Archer>Bow Master

The standard archer of the force, Hans features an excellent critical hit rate, decent attack, and medium range.

Post promotion, Hans stays relatively the same, gaining a range up to 3.

Hans’ ultimate weapons, the Soul Shot and Flame Bow, which give him AOE attacks at medium range, are available for purchase in Runefaust.

Balbaroy: Birdman>Sky Bow

Balbaroy follows the same line as Hans, gaining moderate crit and attack, but with the superior mobility of flight, which allows him to set up excellent ambushes with his phenomenal agility. Be careful, however, that you don't overextend him. He is one of the frailest force members, and does not gain the benefit of land effect.

Balbaroy’s ultimate weapons, the Soul Shot and Flame Bow, which give him AOE attacks at medium range, are available for purchase in Runefaust.

Diane: Archer>Sniper

While Diane may not have as high attack as Hans, she still features an above average crit rate. Where she really excels is in her range. Before promotion, she gains the Aim spell, which allows her to hit the range cap a few times per battle, as well as hit multiple enemies at later ranks.

Post promotion, Diane can equipped the highest ranged bows, giving her a massive threat zone, as well as the ability to hit enemies before they have a chance to reach her or her allies. She also gains a reduced AI priority, so she should remain safe so long as she is never alone.

Diane’s ultimate weapons, the Soul Shot and Wind Bow, which give her AOE attacks at long range, are available for purchase in Runefaust.

Amon: Birdman>Sky Ranger

While balbaroy is swift and frail, Amon trades a bit of speed for better durability than her other flying counterpart. Like Diane, she gains the Aim spell before promotion, allowing her to hit the range cap from the perfect locations thanks to her flying.

Post promotion, she is able to equip the highest ranged bows, and also gains reduced AI priority, causing many enemies to leave her alone if there are other force members nearby, allowing her to hide in a sniper's nest for quite a while while the battles play out beneath her

Amon’s ultimate weapons, the Soul Shot and Wind Bow, which give her AOE attacks at long range, are available for purchase in Runefaust.

Lyle: Assault Knight>Strike KnightWhile Lyle lags a bit behind the other rangers in terms of crit and agility, he excels in raw attack and defense. He will often move after every other force member (aside from maybe Guntz), allowing you to lure enemies close with your tankier members, then bring Lyle in to blast them from safety.

Post promotion, Lyle remains largely the same, allowing his raw battle stats to shine. Be careful not to let him lag behind in outdoor battles, however. He may have a large movement range indoors, but he is crippled by terrain, and his agility may have him lag a bit too far behind.

Lyle’s ultimate weapons, the Strike Cannon and Flame Bow, which give him AOE attacks at medium range, are available for purchase in Runefaust.

Bleu: Dragon>Great DragonBleu should be a key frontliner of the force, with powerful attack and above average HP and defense, and consistent growth rates. His flying type does mean he is vulnerable to ranged attacks, however, so remain wary about enemy snipers.

Post promotion, Bleu remains largely the same, and should continue his consistent growth through to the end. He gains increased elemental resistances, a large boost to his evasion, and regeneration, allowing him to take quite the beating before falling, if his opponents don’t first.

Bleu’s ultimate weapon, the Mystic Horns, which grant him a low range aoe attack, are hidden in a chest in Demon Castle. THIS HAS NOT BEEN IMPLEMENTED YET

Adam: Robot>CyborgAdam is the premier tank of the force. His excellent defense and above average HP will often leave him taking only 1 damage from nearly every enemy. While he does have below average attack, he has a short burst of growth before stagnating a bit and growing again, allowing him to keep up with the rest of the force. Unique to him is the Spark spell, which deals high damage to a single enemy at a low MP cost. It should nearly one shot most early game enemies, so he can get a decent amount of XP to keep up with the rest of the force. He has the lowest movement range of any force member at only 4, but is unimpeded by terrain. He’ll be mobile outdoors, but inside he may lag behind if you don’t slow down for him.

Post promotion, Adam’s stats will continue to grow as they always have, and he will gain the second level of spark, granting him more range and damage.

Adam’s unique items, the Power Chip, which grants him attack and range, and the move chip, which caps out his movement, are dropped in the Chaos fight. NOT YET IMPLEMENTED

Zylo: Warwolf>Wolf BaronZylo is a swift assassin on the force, with above average attack and agility, but with slow growth in defense and HP. His growth rates favor the early game, but around level 10 he stops growing for a while. He has increased crit, not quite at the levels of Earnest, but moderately high. Zylo has high movement and is unimpeded in forests, allowing him to roab the battlefield with ease.

Post promotion, Zylo gains more consistent growth rates.

Zylo’s ultimate weapon, the Lycan Spirit, which grants him increased crit, cleaving attacks, and a chance to instantly kill enemies, is available for purchase in Runefaust

Musashi: SamuraiMusashi is a late game tank, arriving a chapter earlier than usual, seek him out in Rudo to have him join. While he may not join as high a level as before, he is a welcome addition as a frontliner. He has lower attack and agility, but his extremely high defense and HP compensate for that.

Musashi’s ultimate weapon, the Muramasa, which grants him increased crit and a chance to instantly kill enemies with his attacks, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Hanzou: NinjaPolar opposite to Musashi, Hanzhou excels in attack and agility, while his defense and HP suffer. He arrives two chapters earlier in Waral, so hunt around to try and figure out which event triggers his joining. If you miss him there, you can still recruit him in Runefaust, albeit underleveled.

Hanzou learns Shield and Desoul, providing him with moderate utility.

Hanzou’s ultimate weapon, the Guisarme, which grants increased crit and a chance to instantly kill opponents, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Anri: Mage>CryomancerThe queen of ice, Anri learns The Freeze spell line and, once promoted, learns the Frost spell to replace Ruin. She learns both Muddle and Boost, which can be used together to shut down any physical attacking enemy and, eventually, all of them once both spells reach level 4.

Following promotion, Anri’s unarmed attack becomes Freeze 1, allowing here some more flexibility with her MP.

Anri’s ultimate weapon, the Diamond Dust, which increases her defense and upgrades her attack to Freeze 2, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Alef: Mage>ElectromancerAlef, much like her vanilla self, focuses on lightning magic, becoming a magical artillery with her Bolt spell’s massive range and aoe. She also learns Drain to replenish her mana pool from enemies and Desoul to execute her foes.

Following promotion, Alef trades out Ruin for Storm, the highest damaging spell available, and her unarmed attack becomes Bolt 1.

Alef’s ultimate weapon, the Fulmen, which upgrades her attack to Bolt 2 and grants some defense, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Tao: Mage>PyromancerThe lady of flame, Tao learns the Blaze spell, which features shorter range aoe damage. Her magic is still the cheapest, leaving her with multiple opportunities to cast before her MP runs dry. Tao also learns Sleep and Attack, allowing her to make a foe defenseless and then allow her more beefy allies to take them down swiftly.

Following promotion, Tao exchanges Ruin for Flare, gaining the ability to efficiently handle isolated enemies, as well as transforming her unarmed attack into Blaze 1.

Tao’s ultimate weapon, the Flagro, which grants her defense and upgrades her attack to Blaze 2, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Yeesha: Mage>GeomancerMaking an appearance from SFCD, Yeesha specializes in Earth magic, learning the Stone spell, which deals high damage to a single enemy from long range. She also gains the slow and Desoul spells, allowing her to weaken enemies for her allies, or execute them herself.

Following promotion, Yeesha trades Ruin for Quake, which does massive damage, albeit split among all remaining enemies on the battlefield, and her basic attack becomes Stone 1.

Yeesha’s ultimate weapon, the Lapido, which increases defense and upgrades her attack to Stone 2, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Domingo: Magical CreatureThe old “I win” of the force has since been nerfed a bit. He doesn’t gain nearly as much attack or defense, and his HP growth stagnates fast. Now, though, rather than being just another ice mage, Domingo is able to master all of the base elemental spells, giving him amazing situational coverage, much like his SFCD incarnation.

Domingo no longer has increased AI priority, and is weak to snipers. His attacks also have a chance to use the “Demon Smile” effect, dealing a moderate chunk of damage.

Lowe: Priest>VicarMuch like his vanilla self, Lowe focuses primarily on his utility than his raw healing power. He is the only character to learn detox, which is quite useful as poison damage is now based on max health and a lot more enemies in the mid to late game have access to it. He also learns Boost and Slow, allowing him to strengthen his allies and reduce the need for healing, and weaken his opponents. Lowe’s only healing spell is Heal, and he masters it the slowest of all the priests.

Lowe’s ultimate weapon, the Blessed Staff, which increases defense and changes his basic attack into Heal 1, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Khris: Priest>VicarKhris differs from her healer compatriots in that she focuses much of her power into offense as well as defense. She learns both Heal and Aura, though both only up to level 3. Her true power comes in the form of her Blast and, later, Holy spells. Both will require her to be up close and personal with her opponents, but Holy will be especially tricky to pull off. It deals massive damage, but requires her to be directly adjacent to a unit to hit, and it will divide its damage amongst both enemies and allies.

Khris’ ultimate weapon, the Blessed Staff, which increases defense and changes her basic attack to Heal 1, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Torasu: Priest>VicarTorasu is the healing backbone of the force, the only one to master both Heal and Aura, and is one of the few able to solo heal the force. Torasu learns Shield, the only one to master the spell to cover the entire force. Unique to Torasu is his ability to restore the force’s MP through the use of his Bestow spell.

Torasu’s ultimate weapon, the Blessed Staff, which increases defense and changes his basic attack into Heal 1, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Gong: Monk>Master MonkGong excels being in the thick of the fight. He masters Heal quickly, and learns Boost and Attack to strengthen the force’s front lines, then learns Aura late to heal multiple allies. While Gong does not have the largest amount of MP, his spell diversity and the relatively low cost of his necessary spells allow him to be one of the strongest frontliners, and one of the few healers able to retain a bit of use after running dry on MP.

Gong’s ultimate weapon, the Monk Soul, which increases his movement and gives him cleaving attacks, is available for purchase in Runefaust.

Jogurt: YogurtJogurt is… broken. And is explicitly designed to be so. He begins the same as his vanilla self, all of his stats at 1. However, all of his stats grow at the highest level and rate, and he learns every ultimate spell.

If you use him, prepare for a LOT of Yogurt Rings.

Modified Magic:

WARNING: SPOILER!

Magic has been completely revamped, with elemental spells being more powerful than before, and allowing for more creative uses of your casters, and better diversity between the spells aside from Freeze being inherently better because of its range and efficiency compared to the other two.

Ruin:The baseline spell of every mage, It follows the progression of vanilla Blaze, albeit maintaining its AOE at level 4.

Blast:The Blast spell family focuses on dealing with enemies at close range. It is relatively cheap, especially at early levels, and increases in AOE with every level, eventually hitting every visible enemy at level 4. However, the caster must be in melee range to use.

Holy:A distributor of indiscriminate justice, the Holy spell deals massive damage to all units near the caster, divided evenly among them. Be wary, though, as this spell will strike your allies as well.

Blaze:The Blaze spell family deals high damage in a small AOE at medium range, while maintaining a relatively cheap cost compared to its elemental counterparts.

Flare:The ultimate fire spell, Flare deals high damage to a single target, and weaker damage to clusters of enemies.

Freeze:The Freeze spell family is extremely effective at protecting chokepoints, as it deals its damage in a line of increasing length as it levels up. Be tactful with its use, however, it can only be used in a straight line from the caster.

Frost:The ultimate ice spell, Frost deals high damage to a single target, and weaker damage to clusters of enemies.

Bolt:The Bolt spell family focuses on striking as many targets as possible, dealing moderate damage to clusters of enemies from high range.

Storm:The ultimate lightning spell, Storm deals massive damage to a single target, and weaker damage to clusters of enemies.

Stone:The stone family focuses on dealing high single target damage from relative safety, with high damage and high range.

Quake:The ultimate earth spell, Quake deals massive damage, distributed among all visible targets on the field. Be careful, though, as you can only use it in melee range of a target.

Heal:The basic restorative spell, Heal becomes stronger and wider reaching with every level, albeit only ever healing a single target.

Aura:The Aura spell family works at healing groups of allies, growing in size to heal all, regardless of distance, though its power is lower than that of Heal.

Bestow:The only spell capable of restoring MP and the signature spell of Torasu, Bestow will, at first, restore a small amount of MP to the user, before allowing them to spread its benefits to nearby allies, albeit at a hefty cost.

Bless:A unique spell that alternates between healing allies and harming foes, the Bless spell is unique to swords(wo)men of the force, being learned shortly following promotion.

Spark:Unique to Adam, the spark spell allows him to deal high single target damage from medium range, primarily to help him level in the early game. Its cost is low, but so is Adam's MP.

Aim:Utilized by snipers, the Aim spell allows them to hit the range cap of 5 and, at later levels, grants different AOEs, allowing them to rain death upon their foes.

Special thanks to (in no particular order):Rubixcuber, for his amazing editorErikin84, for his excellent sprite conversions and for helping me theory craftSteve (Projectego), for creating SFMods.com, an amazing platform for sharing Shining fanworkDan, the artist commissioned by many members of the community for some truly excellent spriteworkThe SFI Editor Discord server, who all manage to inspire me to work on this

Last edited by ShininGeek on Tue Mar 05 2019 1:38am, edited 7 times in total.